PBA: Marcio Lassiter on track for record-breaker as SMB battles Ginebra for top spot

Marcio Lassiter could set a new PBA record on Sunday night. PBA Images (file photo)

By Ivan Saldajeno

MANILA--All eyes will be on Marcio Lassiter when San Miguel takes on Barangay Ginebra in the main game of the PBA Governors’ Cup doubleheader on Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.

The spotlight is on the six-foot-three gunner, who is on track to set the PBA’s new record for most three-pointers made of all time.

After hitting four threes against the NLEX Road Warriors to move past Allan Caidic for second place in the all-time three-pointer list, Lassiter went for five more when the Beermen dropped the Phoenix Fuel Masters in their last game.

Lassiter could tie Jimmy Alapag at number one with two threes, and a third one would bring him to 1,251, enough for him to become the new PBA three-point king.

However, as what he relayed to SMB head coach Jorge Gallent, Lassiter is only thinking about beating Ginebra on Sunday night especially with a lot of playoff implications in play.

Currently two-thirds of a logjam for first place in Group B with identical 5-2 records, the winner of the 7:30 p.m. game between the Beermen and the Gin Kings will leave the iconic "Big Dome" in solo first place at least for the next two days.

"He's not thinking about it. He just told me when it comes, it comes," Gallent revealed how his conversation with Lassiter went.

"I think he's not pressured. He just plays the game well, and then if it's open, he'll just take the shot."

Playing in his 536th career game, Lassiter, a career 42.6 percent three-pointer shooter, is on track of hitting 1,250 threes in the quickest time possible as Alapag set the current record in 601 games over 3,472 attempts.

Lassiter is on track of retiring with a better three-point clip than Alapag and Caidic, still pegged by many as the gold standard in terms of accuracy from 22 feet beyond.

Gallent believes that when Lassiter sets the new PBA three-point record, he should now be in conversations for the best shooter ever.

"When those two come, he's the best shooter in the PBA, I guess," Gallent continued.

"If he breaks the record, he's going to be one of the best or the best shooter that played in the PBA."

As an appetizer for a potentially historic game, winless Phoenix takes on red-hot Blackwater at 5 p.m.

Currently 0-7 in the Group B standings, another loss will officially eliminate Phoenix from playoff contention for the second straight conference after a solid run to the 2024 Commissioner’s Cup semifinals, making this a must-win for them to stay alive.

However, merely winning might not be enough at this point for the team as they need to bludgeon Blackwater by a huge margin to get a better chance at making the quarterfinals should a three-way tie ensue for fourth place with NLEX.

The Bossing, on the other hand, look to keep that fire burning still after the Gin Kings extinguished it a bit by snapping their three-game winning streak.

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